Qatar coordinates with UN to pay Gaza employees salaries

GAZA, Nov. 8 (Xinhua) -- Qatar will pay in cash the salaries of 23,000 employees of Hamas movement in the Gaza Strip since 2007, in coordination with the United Nations, said an official Thursday.

The official, who spoke on condition of anonymity, told Xinhua that Israel allowed on Thursday evening the entry of 90 million U.S. dollars into the Gaza Strip to pay the salaries of the employees on Friday.

"The money will be deposited into the treasury of the post offices and the Hamas-run Bank of National Production, and on Friday the salaries will be given to the employees," said the official.

He noted that the process of the transfer of salaries will be supervised by UN representatives, who will be present at the post offices and the Bank of National Production in the Gaza Strip.

Meanwhile, sources in the Gaza post office, who also spoke on condition of anonymity, said that the money has been already deposited into the post offices treasury in the Gaza Strip.

The process of paying the salaries will start Friday from 8:00 a.m. to 10:00 p.m., said the official.

Paying salaries to employees of Hamas in the Gaza Strip after the Islamic movement's violent takeover of the coastal enclave, is part of the efforts to alleviate the hard living situation of two million Palestinians in the territory.

It is the first time since 2007 that employees of Hamas in the Gaza Strip get their salaries paid by Qatar. The Palestinian Authority has been refusing to pay them.